
(lass4Z/ 59 7 
Book 







FACTS 



INFORMATION 



vaGT 



IN K !■, 1, A T I O N T (1 



The Catalpa Tree 



(CATALPA BIGNONIOIDES.) 



Its Value, and importance of its extensive 
cultivation in groves. 

E. E. BARNEY, 

DAYTON, OHIO. 







.1 . v.- . JOHNSON P R i N r E K , 32 N . J E K F E R S (l N STREET. 






CATALPA SEED. 



The earlier blooming \ariety of catalpa, named the hardy by Mr. 
Foster of Muscatine, Iowa, seems to be the most desirable for planting. 
L. c\:. M. Woodhull. of I3ayton. ()., dealers in seeds, have collected 
pods from a few trees known to be of that variety. The)- will to a 
limited extent, send to any address bv mail, postage ]jaid, 2500 seeds 
of that variety, sufficient to plant one acre four feet each wav, on receipt 
of hfty cents. Next spring they will carefully mark a large number of 
the finest trees of that \ariety when in bloom, and in the fall collect 
enough seed to supply any demand. 

The first of January 1 collected seed pods from ver\- fine, thrifty, 
tall, straight catalpa trees. I did not know then that the earlier 
variety was considered by some preferable, and do not know that these 
are of that variety, but think they are. I selected them from their 
fine appearance, under the impression that "like produces like." I 
will send by mail, postage paid, to any one wishing the seed, enough 
to plant one acre four feet each way, and a copy of this pamphlet, on 
receipt of fifty cents. 

E. E. BARNEY, Davton, O. 



FACTS 



INFORMATION 



IN RELATION TO 



The Catalpa Tree, 



(CATALPA BIGNONIOIDES.) 



Its Value, and importance of its extensive 
cultivation in groves. 



E. E. BARNEY, 

DAYTON, OHIO. 



THE CATALPA. 

Thirty years ago Dr. Job Haines, of this city, a horticulturist of 
rare discrimination and sound judgment, to whom I appHed for shade 
trees, called my attention to two varieties of catalpa, varying two 
weeks in time of blooming ; the earlier variety bearing large, nearly 
white, very showy blossoms in great profusion ; the later blooming 
variety bearing a smaller flower of same general appearance, except 
darker color and less profuse in blooms. As each remained in bloom 
two weeks, he suggested the planting of the varieties alternately, and 
thus secure a month of flowers. 

A thousand or more catalpa trees, of both varieties, have been 
growing on our side-walks for the past twenty to thirty-five years. Of 
their value, except for shade, I knew nothing until within the last 
eight years. Since then I have trom time to time published such in- 
formation as I obtained in relation to its very great value, for its won- 
derful durability, and the ease with whicli it may be propagated, at 
any point south of 42° latitude. 

Recently I have been requested to publish in pamphlet form, for 
more general distribution, these articles, and such other information 
bearing on this subject as 1 have been able to gather. As nearly all I 
have written has been obtained from others, in complying with this 
recjuest I prefer to give it as ol)tained from them, and in the order 
published, at the expense of some repetition, rather than on my own 
authority, that each may be able to judge for himself of its value. All 
I have written previous to 1876 has been re-written, enlarged and re- 
published sine e then, so 1 will not go back of that date. 

[From the Railwa'. Ace, Chicago, Nov. 9, 1876.] 

Mr. E. E. Barney, of Dayton, Ohio, the veteran car builder, in a 
conversation with a representative of this paper, recently, stated it as 
his belief that the catalpa tree will one of these days work a revolu- 
tion in the matter of railroad ties. lie says that in an agricultural 



address at Carthage, Ohio, in 1825, General Harrison insisted that 
there was nothing Uke it for posts and like uses, and urged the farmers 
to plant and cultivate it. 

At Vincennes, Indiana, there are posts of the catalpa tree that have 
been in the ground for many years, and are still in a perfect state of 
preservation. Mr. Barney states that in twenty years after the plant- 
ing of the seed the tree will make four ties. This is a subject well 
worthy thorough investigation, and we shall be glad to hear from any 
of our readers who, from experience or observation, are able to throw 
any light upon it. 



THE CATALPA— ITS VALUE. 



To the Editor of the Dayton Journal : 

The following statements, made by Dr. J. A. Warder, President of 
the Ohio State Horticultural Society, in his annual address before the 
society, in Toledo, in relation to the catalpa, are of interest : 

"Another tree of rapid growth and with a promise of great utility, 
is the catalpa, of which wonderful stories are told as to its powers of 
resisting decay. General Harrison, when Governor of the Northwest 
Territory, found catalpa pickets in the old French stockade at Vin- 
cennes, that were still sound. One ©f the early settlers of Knox 
county, Indiana, found a catalpa log that had fallen across a stream in 
such a way that it served as a bridge, and had evidently been thus 
used by the aborgines for so long a time that it was cpiite flattened by 
the pressure of their feet. He asked an old Indian how long that 
bridge had been there. The reply was, ' My father's father crossed 
on that log.' Recently some persons have set it out in timber planta- 
tions. My own plantations are very promising." 

The following communication to the Raihvay Age, by James M. 
Bucklin, C. E. , on the catalpa, will also be read with much interest. 
Mr. Bucklin was an engineer on the Miami Canal, and let the water 
into the Middletown feeder in 1826. The information he gives is very 
valuable. Those wishing to plant the catalpa seed this spring should 
gather the pods this month, as they will begin to open and drop off 
next month. I shall be pleased to give seed pods to all wishing to 
plant and have not time to gather them, if they will call at the office 
of the car works. E. E. Barney. 



The Catalpa for Railway Ties. 

Knightsville, Clay Co.. Ind., November 15, 1876. 
To tlie Editor of tlic Raihoay Age : 

I am glad to observe a call for light in the columns of your widely- 
spread journal on the subject of the catalpa. As it is possible that it 
may be attended with useful effect, and in order to contribute some- 
thing toward this desirable result, I will try to communicate facts with 
regard to it which will enable you to investigate a subject well worthy 
of examination by all who are interested in railroad construction and 
maintenance. Its importance has for a long time impressed itself so 
strongly on my mind that I have repeatedly, for the last forty years, 
urged upon railroad companies the great advantage to be derived by 
them from the propagation of this tree in large bodies — in one in- 
stance with such effect that the Board of Public Works of Illinois, in 
charge of the prosecution of the "internal improvement system of 
1835,'"' ordered me to select lands for that puri)Ose on the routes of 
the various railroads then in process of location and construction. 
Accordingly, I made the required selections in several localities well 
adapted to its propagation and rapid growth, on the Sangamon, the 
Embarrass, the Little Wabash, and the Big Muddy rivers ; but ui>- 
fortunately for the State, this project failed with the internal improve- 
ment system, and was never carried out. Had it been done, the ca- 
talpa would now be flourishing on all these rivers, and probably dis- 
seminated in all favorable localities throughout the State, on the same 
streams where, in all probability, it grew in 1799, at which time " its 
discovery as a southern tree " was first announced by a French na- 
turalist. 

When we take into consideration the important fact that the em- 
ployment of so durable a material would prove as beneficial as the use 
of steel in point of economy in the maintenance of railroads, and 
that it would dispense with the enormous cost of /ador in the constant 
replacement of ordinary wooden structures, we are forcibly struck 
with the conviction that if the unfortunate failure of the State in the 
prosecution of the internal improvements had not occurred, and the 
Board of Public Works had only carried into eflect their intention to 
introduce the general propagation and production of the catalpa for 
railroad and other incidental purposes, the whole State would have 
been amply remunerated by the success of their efforts in that direc- 
tion for all the money expended in their attempt to carry out the in- 
ternal improvement system. 



You will understand why I entertain these views when you read the 
annexed copy of a letter to Mr. John Simpson, then Superintendent 
of the Terre Haute & Indianapolis Railroad, on the subject of the 
catalpa, addressed to him a year ago last July. 

Knightsville, Clay Co., Ind., July 15, 1S76. 
Air. John Si////>son, Tcrrc IId!iti\ Ltd. : 

Dear Sir — -I have lately seen in the public i^rints of the State fre- 
quent disparaging allusions to the catalpa, even from the learned ed- 
itor of the Indianapolis yiw/v/^?/, who styles it the ''■ stinking catalpa.''' 
Now, this astute gentlemen, even if he can not see beyond his nose, 
ought to know something about the most remarkable natural produc- 
tion of his own State. 

The most durable of all species of timl)er, so much so that I have 
long desired to call your attention to it, on account of its perfect adap- 
•tation to railroad and telegraph purposes, especially as it is indigenous 
in this'State, and is as prolific as the ailantus, when propagated. By 
botanists it is called a '' Southern tree, first cUscovered in 1779 by a 
F'rench naturalist." 

It is found in the South, but it is by no means confined to the 
southern States, for the finest siiecimens in the world, probably, are 
now growing in Missouri, three and four feet in diameter; and in 
1828, while Captain Smith, of the United States army, and myself 
were exploring the obstructions to the navigation of the Wabash river, 
we unexpectedly discovered a lofty forest of catalpa of large size, at 
the mouth of White river, below Vincennes, Indiana. But for its 
large leaves and bunches of long seed-pods it could not be identified 
with the crooked specimens ordinarily reared for their floral append- 
ages. We were not then aware that the timber was of any particular 
value, but having occasion to return to the locality in 1834, I found 
that nearly all the trees had disappeared, having been cut down and 
hauled off for posts, even to great distances. Subsequently I was in- 
formed by old French residents of St. Louis and Portage des Sioux 
that at one time it abounded in St. C'harles County, Missouri, at the 
mouth of the Missouri, and was highly valued for its durability. In 
1866 I found it in large bodies and of enormous height and size, 
three and four feet in diameter, and fifty feet without a limb, in the 
dense forests which extend south of Poplar Bluffs, south-eastern Mis- 
souri, between the Big Black and St. Francis rivers. I was then ex- 
ploring a route for the Iron Mountain & Helena (Ark.) Railroad, a 



report on which, describing locaHties, etc., I inclose (see page 9). 
Throughout that region the pecuHar value of the tree is well known, 
not only for its durability, but for other properties invaluable to early 
settlers. Canoes are used exclusively on these rivers, and when made 
of catalpa, never crack in seasoning, or rot. Henly, the ferryman at 
Po.plar Bluffs, had a canoe, perfectly sound, three feet across the gun- 
wales, which he assured me had been in use twelve years. He after- 
ward informed me that he had seen catalpa trees, perfectly sound, 
back of New Madrid, on the Mississippi River, that had been killed 
by the eruptions of 181 1. This statement was too incredible to rhake 
a note of, but it has since been confirmed by respectable citizens of 
New Madrid, who stated, also, that all the catalpa trees were killed 
at that time. 

In a congenial soil, similar to that which I have observed in many lo- 
calities on the Wabash, the growth of the catalpa is exceedingly rapid, 
and when propagated should be suffered to grow as thick as possible, 
so as to confine the growth to the trunk, and give it an upward bear- 
ing, the natural halMt of all forest trees. 

The general extirpation of the tree in this State, and in some parts 
of Illinois, is readily accounted for when we reflect that the wood is 
peculiarly adapted to all domestic uses, that it probably was the canoe 
wood of the Indians and of the early settlers, and subsequently in 
great demand for posts all over the country. 

There are probably two varieties of the wood, like tlie lilue and 
white ash ; the fibers of one are oblique and is difficult to split. For 
cross-ties and platforms it would be specially adapted, and last, prob- 
ably, until it wore out. There are many exposed places about depots 
where it would be of great value. 

In 1836 I earnestly recommended the propagation of the tree to the 
Board of Public 'Works of Illinois, and selected lands, by their order, 
on the routes of the various roads then in course of location and con- 
struction, for the purpose of raising this timber. 

Respectfully, James M. Bucki.ix. 

As a precautionary measure, observation has taught me that we 
must imitate nature in rearing this tree, or any other, for the value of 
its timber — not isolate them, but let them grow as if they were de- 
signed for hoop poles. They will then grow straight and erect, to a 
great height, without a limb. 

These trees are now growing indigenously in the creek bottoms, 
within sight of the place where I am now writing this letter, and when 



8 

they are transplanted for ornamental purposes, their growth is as rapid 
as the ailantus. 

All roads, in point of economy, will find it advisable to plant the 
catalpa, and thus avoid the enormous cost and annoyance of constant 
replacement, and liability to accident from the unexpected failure of 
decaying timber ; and surely it is in accordance with reason and com- 
mon sense that the value of the stock of any railroad company would 
be enhanced and confidence inspired by a knowledge of the fact that 
provision had been made to reduce the usual cost of maintenance, 
which now absorbs so large a proportion of the gross receipts of roads, 
to the lowest possible terms. 

Very respectfully, JAMES M. BUCKLIN, 

Civil Engineer. 



More Testimony in Favor of the Catalpa. 



The following communication is from a prominent official of the 
St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway : 

December 15, 1876. 
To the Editor of Tlic Railway Age : 

In your issue of November 30 is a letter from James M. Bucklin, 
C. E., upon the value of catalpa timber for railway uses. In an ed- 
itorial in the same paper you refer to some private letter of his, and 
publish his assertion that this railroad, though passing through a coun- 
try which, he says, is well supplied with this timber, has made no use 
of it unless by accident. He expresses the belief that the officers of 
the road know nothing of the tree. 

Major Bucklin has not said too much in praise of this invaluable 
timber. It is beyond question the most durable of all species growing 
in this country, excepting, perhaps, the cedar. He is, however, great- 
ly in error in supposing that our officials are in ignorance concerning 
its value. The tree is known, and its value appreciated. It has been 
in use here for a long time. There are miles of fencing, built years 
ago by the company, in which none but catalpa posts were used, and 
now it is being used alone for that purpose. 

While building the Belmont line, efforts were made to procure it for 
ties and telegraph poles. Phe same scarcity of trees large enough for 
ties, that prevented them from getting more than a limited supply 



then, has since been found to exist all along the lines in Missouri. In 
Arkansas the road may be more fortunate. A careful examination of 
every forty acre tract of the company's land grant of two million 
acres undoubtedly shows to what extent it can be utilized. 



THE CATALPA. 



Further Information about this Invaluable Tree^Almost as Durable as 

Iron— How to Propagate it— Ties that will Diminish 

Repairs $200 per Mile. 



Dayton Obio. December ii. 1876. 
Tn the Editor of the Rail-way Age : 

I am much gratified that the notice of the catalpa, in the issue of 
November 9, has called forth much valuable information on the sub- 
ject. Allow me to add a few more facts, which I trust may call forth 
more information as to the invaluable properties of the catalpa. In 
the spring of 187 1, in conversation with Wm. R. Arthur, formerly 
superintendent of the Illinois Central Railroad, he stated that the 
catalpa would make a tie for railroads that would last forever ; that it 
was easily cultivated, was of rapid growth, and when planted in 
groves grew straight and tall as any forest tree ; that he had several 
groves then growing on his farm that had been planted but four years 
and were twenty feet high ; that he had planted them for fence-posts, 
but had subsequently learned that they would hold a spike as well as 
oak and would not split. Hence their value for cross-ties. 

In answer to my inquiry how he knew the catalpa would last indefi- 
nitely, he replied he had asked the same question of the party who 
gave him the information, and that he replied: " Seemg is believing. 
Go with me to Cairo, up the Ohio River twenty miles, and back from 
the river eight miles." They went, and found on a farm belonging 
to his father a gate post which, he stated, he had assisted his father to 
put in position forty-six years previously. They dug around it and 
examined it carefully to the bottom, and found it as sound as the day 
it was planted — no signs of decay whatever. Subsequently I stated 
these facts to Judge Upsher, of Indiana, and spoke of their impor- 



10 

tance to railroads. He said the statement recalled what he had been 
told by old citizens of Vincennes, Indiana, in relation to the old stock- 
ade built by the first French settlers of that place, of logs cut from the 
catalpa tree, that grows native in the forest there. These, when re- 
moved from the ground nearly one hundred years after they had been 
placed there, were perfectly sound, and gave no indication of decay. 
Subsequently I wrote to C. M. Allen, of Vincennes, for such informa- 
tion as he could give in relation to the catalpa for cross-ties and posts- 
He replied: 

"Your inquiries as to the durability of the catalpa tree I can only 
answer in a general way and for a limited time, having been a resident 
here only for thirty years. During that period of time I have seen 
much of it in posts and timbers of buildings coming in contact with 
the ground, and my observation is that it is the most durable of all 
timber. For railroad cross-ties it is better than either mulberry or 
cedar. A gentleman has just stepped into my office who informs me 
that he has it in fence posts of twenty-two years' standing, and that 
they are as sound and firm apparently as the day they were put in. It 
may be regarded as next to iron for railroad cross-ties, if the wood is 
firm enough to hold a spike. In fart, it may be regarded as imperish- 
able under or lying on the ground." 

I have seen it stated in the {tapers that the State agricultural socie- 
ties of Delaware and Michigan had recommended farmers to plant the 
catalpa for fence posts, as being for durability quite equal to red cedar. 
T saw in one of the Detroit papers, last of April, 1876, in answer to 
an inquirer what tree he should plant to mark the centennial year, an 
editorial paragraph directing him to plant the catalpa, for its dura- 
bility. 

In an essay on the best practical means of preserving and restoring 
the forests of Ohio, by Daniel Millikin, Hamilton, Ohio, in the Ohio 
Agricultural Reports of 187 1, second series, (a very valuable essay), he 
says of catalpa {catalpa bigno?udes): 

" This handsome and valuable tree is native in all the southwest- 
ern States, but is everywhere rare. The few ancient groves in south- 
ern Indiana and Illinois may be native, and at all events the tree is 
hardy in any part of Ohio. The tree is not a large one, at maturity, 
but makes a fine trunk in groves. (A. M. Brown, in 111. Hort. Rep. 
for 1868, p. 148). The rapidity of its growth in youth is astonishing, 
and it seems to grow equally well on any soil. Catalpa wood is coarse 
in the grain, light and brittle. Its value arises from its great durabil- 



11 

ity, even when exposed in air and damp at the same time. This 
quahty of the wood was pointed out by General Harrison, as long ago 
as 1825, in an address delivered at Carthage, Hamilton County, Ohio. 
He became acquainted with the tree at Vincennes, Indiana, where 
there are some aged trees at this time, and where he was once resident 
as governor of the Northwest Territory. The durability of catalpa 
wood has been pointed out by planters in more recent times, but the 
tree has not been much grown. It is to be recommended for fence 
posts. The seeds are borne in long pods, and are small and delicate 
affairs. I have found them to germinate in ordinary garden soil, and 
in the full glare of sunlight. The young plants are so sturdy that I 
recommend the planting of seeds where the trees are desired, not- 
withstanding their smallness. Sow in sjjring, and cover not more 
than one-fourth of an inch." 

Thomas Brown, an old citizen of Dayton, says that twenty-five 
years ago he planted a large number of catalpa trees on his suburban 
place ; that while planting, several then old citizens commended his 
selection of catalpa, saying it was the most durable of trees, and 
would outlast r^gd cedar. 

Last February, William V. Huffman, of this city, had the long, 
bean-like seed pods hanging from a catalpa shade tree growing on his 
grounds plucked, and in April planted the seeds contained in them, as 
apple seeds are planted in rows for a nursery. They all germinated 
and grew vigorously, many of them three feet in height. Three years 
ago I cut from a catalpa tree, that had been cut down after growing thirty 
years as a shade tree, two railroad cross-ties, and placed them in a track 
over which trains pass every hour, one under a rail joint. The spikes 
show no signs of loosening. The catalpa does not hold a spike as well 
as oak, but sufficiently well for all practical purposes. It does not split 
easily. While not as tough as some woods, it should not be termed 
brittle, as stated in above extract from Millikin's essay. I subjected 
pieces of catalpa, oak, and ash, one inch square, to a breaking pres- 
sure twelve inches betweeii supports. The catalpa broke under a 
pressure of 703 pounds: ash, 890 pounds; one piece of oak at 577, 
one at 709, and one at 1,141 pounds. The catalpa deflected three 
times as much as the oak or ash before breaking. 

Catesby speaks of the catalpa as native in the Carolinas in 1726, 
where it is also called catawba. It is distinguished by its silver-gray, 
slightly furrowed bark, its wide-spreading head, the fewness of its 
branches, and the fine, pale green of its very large, heart-shaped 



12 

leaves. It is a very profuse bloomer, except in wet summers. The 
flowers are very showy, large, bell-shaped, white, slightly tinged with 
violet, and dotted with purple and violet in the throat. They are 
succeeded by long, bean-shaped seed pods, which hang till the next 
spring, when they open, and the small, thin, broadly-winged seeds are 
borne away on the winds. The ' ' Farmers and Planters' Encyclopoe- 
dia " says the rapid growth of the catalpa in almost every situation in 
which it can be placed in the Middle States, and the adaptation of its 
wood to fence posts and other useful purposes, make it deserving the 
attention of farmers. The wood, though light, is very compact, of 
fine texture, and susceptible of the most brilliant polish, its fine straw 
color producing a fine effect in cabinet work and inside finish for 
houses. 

Those wishing to propagate the catalpa should gather the seed pods 
this or next month ; put in a dry place secure from mice. They may 
be found hanging from the catalpa tree, planted as a shade tree in 
most of the cities and towns in Ohio. There are fifty or more seeds 
in each pod. Plant in spring, in good soil, in rows three or four feet 
apart, six inches in the row, and thin down to one foot. Keep the 
ground clean and let them grow three years ; then tra^isplant, placing 
them in rows ten feet apart north and south, and six feet apart east 
and west. In from twelve to fifteen years remove each alternate tree in 
rows running north and south for fence posts and telegraph poles, 
leaving the remaining trees ten feet apart one way and twelve feet the 
other, 363 to the acre. In from twelve to fifteen years more these 
will be large enough to make four to eight railroad ties each, if they 
have been planted in good ground. They should be split or sawed 
through the middle and the round side placed on the ground. The 
catalpa has only a film of sap iq thick. 

Each acre and a half of ground thus planted and properly cared 
for, will furnish enough fence posts and telegraph poles in from twelve 
to fifteen years to pay for the land and all expense of planting, care 
and protection ; and in from twenty-five to thirty years furnish railroad 
ties for one mile of track, which at fifty cents each (cheap considering 
their quality) will pay $25 per year on each acre of ground for each 
year the trees have been growing. Can a farmer make a better in- 
vestment for himself and family than to plant ten to twenty acres in 
catalpa trees ? A railroad once tied with catalpa will find its annual 
expenses for repairs diminished $200 per mile, a saving that would 
add ten per cent, to the value of the property. 

Respectfully. E. E. BARNEY. 



13 
Instructions about Propagating the Catalpa. 

Knightsville, Clay Co., Ind., Feb. j, 1876. 
To the Editor of the Railway Age : 

I have received several letters of inquiry about propagating the ca- 
talpa, " How far apart to jilant the trees ?'' and then " How to obvi- 
ate the crooked, stunted growth characteristic of the tree ?" or 
" Where to procure the seed of the tall, straight kind of catalpa?" 

In a previous letter, when speaking of the catalpa as a forest tree, 1 
described it as of large size, tall and straight, such as 1 saw on the 
Wabash in 1828, and on the route of the Iron Mountain & Southern 
Railroad, in South JVlissouri, in 1866, especially in the last named lo- 
cality, where they are still growing, although possibly in diminished 
numbers. I also remarked, " that as a precaution, we must imitate 
nature in rearing such trees, not isolate them, but suffer them to grow 
as thick as possible, so as to confine the grotvth to the trunk, the natural 
habit of all forest trees." 1 said this to call atttention to a fact, which 
I supposed was generally known, that nature has a process of her own, 
by which, if not interrupted, she confines the growth of the tree to 
the trunk and mipels it upward — a process essentially necessary to 
adapt the trunks of all trees to a servicable purpose. 

This process of nature is density of growth, and its effect is mani- 
fested in the spontaneous growth of all those tall densely growing for- 
ests, from which are procured all our supplies of timber, adapted 
by their large dimensions to practical use; and if we admit, as it 
seems we must, that the useful effect of this density of growth is to 
shorten the period of maturity and produce an early adaptation to prac- 
tical use, then we ought to imitate nature and adopt a process so in- 
variably successful, for, by this natural process, it is evident that the 
vegetable fluids of the young tree and its consec|uent growth are at- 
tracted in the direction of light and impelled upward by other coercive 
vital forces, and, as this upward tendency increases and the growth of 
the tree advances, the lower limbs, for want of light and sustenance, 
die and fall off, and thus the concentration of growth results, by a 
natural process, in the enlargement of the proportions of the tree, its 
early development and consequent adaptation to useful purposes. Not 
only this, density of growth produces density of shade and atmos- 
pheric conditions by which the ground is always kept moist, irrigated 
and in a state highly favorable to the decomposition of vegetable mat- 
ter, the formation of vegetable mold and its solubility and absorption 



14 

by the roots of the tree, which, besides being productive of the rapid 
growth and early maLurity of timber, continually increases the fertility 
of the lands upon which those dense bodies of timber are growing, 
until they attain the utmost limits of fertility. Hence it follows that 
the best and most speedy results may be reasonably expected in prop- 
agating the catalpa, the black, locust, or, indeed, any forest tree, by 
selecting a tract of land either recently cleared or only partially so, 
and after planting the seed superficially and propagating a tliick stand 
of plants, to let them alone and trust to the discriminating powers of 
nature, for she does her own thinning out and her own transplanting 
by smothering all weakly shoots and re-invigorating the strong to sup- 
plant superfluous or abortive plants. 

Under the continual operation of this natural process the number 
of trees in a given space are gradually diminished until they arrive at 
maturity tall, straight and fit for service. 

A striking example of the effect of density of growth is seen in the 
post oak under different circumstances. On the Trinity river, in 
Texas, and on the Cross Timbers, its growth is scattered and detached. 
Its appearance is that of an apple tree, and it will not make more than 
two cross-ties; but when found in the dense forests of Arkansas, Mis- 
souri, or in Illinois, it is a straight tree, and long enough in the trunk 
and large enough to make ten cross-ties. It is not a large tree under 
any circumstances, but it is the most durable in the ground of all 
species of oak. 

Having seen the pernicious effects of thinning out young forest 
trees and groves of black walnut, I can not approve of it, and believ- 
ing, as I have good reasons to do, in the efficacy of the density 
of growth, I question the pro[)riety and prudence of any inter- 
ference whatever with the operations of nature after we have suc- 
ceeded in establishing a thick growth of trees on a young plantation, 
until the trees arrive at a certain state of maturity, a period of useful- 
ness which may be greatly protracted, but which can not possibly be 
accelerated by any interference on our part, however we may impiove 
upon nature in the practice of horticulture, or in the propagation of 
shade and fruit trees by an artificial ])rocess, and for an entirely differ- 
ent purpose. 

The object of employing a natural mode of culture for the catalpa 
is to enlarge the dimensions of the tree, to accelerate its growth and 
maturity, and, at the same time, correct its tendency to a low, shrubby 
growth when isolated — the effect of transplanting and re-transplanting. 

JAMES M. BUCKLIN. 



15 

The Culture of the Catalpa. — Further 
Facts. 

Knig'htsville, Clay Co.. Ind., February 22, 1876. 
To the Editor of the Raihvay Age : 

The subject of adopting a natural mode of culture for the catalpa is 
to enlarge the dimensions of the tree, to accelerate its growth and ma- 
turity, and at the same time to correct its tendency to a low, shrubby 
growth where isolated, in a great degree the effect of transplanting, which 
seems to exert a greater influence on the growth of the catalpa than upon 
many other trees, by j^ermanently impairing its recuperative power to 
produce wood. However this may.be, all who wish to insure the rapid 
and early maturity of a young plantation of forest trees, should bear in 
mind that after following the precepts of nature in propagating the tree, 
we must pursue the same means, or mode of culture by which a ra])id 
and uninterrupted growth is preserved and maintained by nature. 
But to understand this thoroughly we must examine the remains of 
those primeval forests which once covered the whole country, and 
observe the exuberant growth of the timber and the condition of the 
soil, which, untrodden except by the surveyor, the hunter, or by wild 
animals, is covered with mold as soft and elastic as a sponge, and in a 
perfect state of adaptation to the assimilation of nutriment by the roots 
of the tree. Then compare the fresh luxuriance of the timl)er and the 
absorbent soil of these dense forests with the state of the woodland 
pastures around us, whose every tree exhibits evidences of premature 
decay, and where the soil, impacted by the feet of animals, is almost 
impervious to moisture, and however rich the soil may be in plant 
food the trees are starving to death, because the roots of the trees 
can not digest their food. 

This is a state of things that would certainlv arrest the growth of a 
young tree. We are therefore admonished, not only to follow the 
precepts of nature in the |)ropagation of the tree, but to prevent the 
possibility of any interruption to her operations. Therefore the tract 
of land selected for a young plantation should be securely inclosed, 
and no stock of any description allowed access to the grounds ; for it 
is only under such conditions that we can expect fiiiibrr trees to arrive 
at a maturity of usefulness in the shortest possible time, or indeed, ever 
to attain the dimensions required to adapt them to a useful purpose. 

In my next I will describe the peculiar character of the soil which 
should be selected, and upon which we may reasonably expect to raise 



16 

catalpa trees of sufficient dimensions for railroad cross-ties, etc. As 
for telegraph poles and posts, it would seem to be a waste of valuable 
material to cut them down prematurely for such purposes, when red 
cedar can be procured at less cost than the prospective value of 
catalpa ; that is, if the latter is planted on a congenial soil, capable of 
producing a tree of the requisite size for cross-ties and platform plank. 

I have had some reasons to suspect that there may be two varieties 
of the wood of the catalpa, like the varieties in the ash, the dl//c and 
the white, the latter "being of a straight grain, the former oblique." 
It is very questionable with regard to the catalpa, but it may be im- 
portant to ascertain the facts. 

I have seen it stated on high authority that the '■'■Paidoma, a Japan 
tree," is a congcnc?- of the common catalpa, and, like it, of rapid growth 
and a profuse blossomer, but that the flowers of the former diffuse far 
around the tree the fragrant odor of violets, an attribute which cannot 
be claimed for the latter. JAMES M. BUCKLIN. 



Further Important Facts about the Catalpa 

— Its Wonderful Longevity — Ho\a^ 

to Raise It. 



Dayton, Ohio, Oct, 20, 1877 
To the Editor of The Raihi'ax Age : 

Since last writing you on the value of the catalpa tree, and the great 
importance of its general cultivation, by railroad companies, for ties, 
posts, etc., I have gathered some further facts that may be of interest 
to railroad managers, which I herewith submit. 

Prof. John Collet, in the report of the Geological Survey of Indiana 
for 1S73, -''^y^ ^i'' P'^g^ .564 : 

' ' Catalpa trees, two and three feet in diameter, are found in Knox 
county. One twenty-five inches in diameter had thirty-seven rings of 
annual growth, indicating an increase in size during that time of over 
0.67 of an inch per annum. A catalpa gate-post set in the ground by 
Col. Decker, in 1780, near the school house on Deshee creek, was 
cut up for firewood in 187 i, and was found in fair condition after do- 
ing service for nearly a century. President Harrison, on his visit to 
Vincennes, in 1840, publically called attention to the fact that a picket 
fence, built by him along the river front of his former residence, was 



17 

in good order after forty years' service. The portions of the posts 
(catalpa and mulberry) buried in the earth were found as sound as if 
cut yesterday. Catalpa posts set by General Harrison about the gov- 
ernor's house in 1808, were taken up, Mr. Pidgeon informs me, a few 
years ago, and, being sound, were reset in another place." 

On pages 416 and 417 the professor says : 

"Mr. W. A.Walters has measured catalpa trees, in the original 
forest, near Owensville, three and four feet in diameter. Mr. R. E. 
Starnate has measured catalpa trees, in the White river bottoms, two 
and a half, three, and even four and a half feet in diameter. This 
timber is universally credited with wonderful power to resist decay 
and time. Col. Cockrum has known it in use, without stain of decay, 
for fifty years ; and Capt. Kurtz knows catalpa trees dead, but still 
standing in the overflowed bottoms of the Wabash, which were killed 
by the ice in the great January flood of 1828. The tree is of rapid 
growth, offensive in odor and taste, is not liable to be destroyed by 
insects or animals, flourishes best in bottom lands, but will grow in 
any soil or position." 

If the first year's growth freezes down, as it may north of 40° lati- 
itude, it will spring from the root and grow vigorously the next year, 
and grow readily up to 42° of latitude. 

J. M. Bucklin, civil engineer, of Knightstown, Indiana, writes that 
in 1834 he went to Carmi, 111., with Governor Davidson and others 
to plan a bridge across the Little Wabash. While there they saw many 
wagon loads of catalpa timber hauled by farmers more than twenty 
miles from the mouth of White river, and found on inquiry that it was 
deemed invaluable for fence and sign posts, on account of its extraor- 
dinary durability. Mr. Bucklin suggested the use of this timber, and 
the construction of a cheap, open-trestle bridge instead of the more 
expensive covered one they had intended to erect. On visiting Vin- 
cennes for further information, their preconceived opinion of the re- 
markable durability of the catalpa was fully confirmed, and the bridge 
company adopted his recommendation. At that time the durability of 
the catalpa was notorious and unquestioned. Dr. John A. Warder, 
president of the Horticultural Society of Ohio, writes 'from North 
Bend, Ohio : 

" So well satisfied am I of the great durability of the catalpa, the 
fine polish it will take, its great beauty as a cabinet wood, and its value 
for railroad purposes, that. I wish myself a young man that I might 
plant a quarter section with catalpas, four feet each way. I have 



18 

several groves of four years' growth from Dayton seed, planted on 
the hillside, seventeen feet high and twelve and a half inches in cir- 
cumference one foot from the ground." 

The report of the department of Horticulture in the Illinois Uni- 
versity, says; "The catalpa planted two feet by four feet has made 
the greatest growth, an average of four feet per year, and was very 
little injured by the severe winter of 1872-3, when the thermometer 
marked 30° below zero. It is the only kind of which none have 
died. It is also one of the cheapest of the various kinds of trees 
planted, and is noted for the durability of its wood." 

There is in our office a catalpa fence post taken from a post-and-rail 
fence in Indiana, that J. S. Miller, Sup't, Richmond, Ind. , vouches 
for as having been placed two feet in the ground seventy-five years ago, 
where it has remained till quite recently, when it was taken up and 
sent to me by him as a sample of the durability of catalpa. It is 
worn away below the surface of the ground nearly one-fourth of its 
diameter. It is perfectly sound in every part. Mr. Miller also sent 
me some catalpa logs, from which I have had cut a dozen railroad 
ties and placed in a track over which trains pass hourly. Thus far 
the spikes seem to hold well, and the ties show no signs of giving un- 
der the rail. 

Some inquiry has been made for catalpa trees, of two or three years 
growth, for transplanting. A number of persons within the last two 
or three years have planted the seed largely for trees for their own 
transplanting. Nurserymen have heretofore grown them only in lim- 
ited numbers to sell for shade trees. 

Those wishing to plant in large quantities for growth for future use 
can only obtain them by raising from the seed. The long bean-like 
pods that hang suspended from the catalpa tree may be gathered any 
time in December or January, and stored in a dry place. As early in 
the spring as the ground is in suitable condition, take the seeds from 
the pods and plant in rows three or four feet apart, and one to three 
inches in the row. If all grow they should be early thinned out to 
one foot. Those taken up may be replanted. The ground should be 
kept clean. When they are two to three years old replant in rows, 
four feet each way, that they may grow tall and straight. After twelve 
to fifteen years each alternate row should be cut out for fence-posts and 
telegraph poles. In from twelve to fifteen years more the remaining 
trees will make six ties each if they have been planted in good ground. 
The first two lengths should be split or sawed through the middle, the 



19 

ftext two flattened on the sides. The catalpa is particularly well adapt- 
ed to this mode of manufacture, as it has only the merest film of sap, 
not thicker than paper. 

There will be 2,640 trees on an acre if planted four feet apart each 
way. The fence posts and telegraph poles obtained from cutting out 
each alternate row after twelve to fifteen years will pay the entire expense 
of planting and cultivation and manufacture of ties, so that each acre 
of land planted with catalpas will furnish ties enough for three miles 
of road free of cost, that will not require to be renewed for the next 
fifty years. This estimate is made on planting closer than recom- 
mended in my former communication, but is given on authority of 
those having practical experience in such matters. 

E. E. BARNEY. 

Mr. Suel. Foster, of Muscatine, Iowa, writes: "Twenty-three 
years ago, among a lot of nursery stock received from northern In- 
diana, were several catalpa trees. A portion of them bloomed two 
weeks ealier than the rest. Subsequently severe killing winters de- 
stroyed most of the late blooming catalpas, but did not injure a twig 
of the early blooming. The flowers of the earlier blooming catalpas 
are larger, more profuse, and whiter than those of the later blooming. 
The seed-pods are longer and larger, and fewer on a tree. I have 
named the earlier blooming variety the hardy, as both true and appro- 
priate. The later blooming I call the common. My hardy catalpas, 
six years' growth, are two to three inches in diameter two feet from 
the ground, and eight to thirteen feet high. I think when planting 
for timber two by four feet better than four by four feet. If the trees 
are cut close down to the ground the second spring, the little stump 
will throw up a straight and thrifty shoot, and often outgrow those not 
cut down. For some years I have had much confidence in the hardy 
variety of catalpa, as a beautiful ornamental tree, and a most valuable 
timber for fence posts and railroad ties. For some years I have been 
distributing the few seeds I have to those who would appreciate them, 
in Iowa and Illinois, and to the east. I think the common or tender 
variety should not be planted north of St. Louis.'' 

From Mr. Foster's statement above, it appears both varieties, what 
he calls the hardy or early blooming, and the later blooming, which he 
calls the common, are grown in Dayton, of which equally handsome 
specimens of both are on our streets as shade trees. Our latitude is 
39° 4o\ When Dr. Haines introduced the early blooming variety to 



20 

Us thirty years ago, he spoke of it as more thrifty and as bearing more 
showy and more profuse flowers. Mr. Foster's experience is very im- 
portant in determining which can be planted fartherest north. So far 
as the trees in Dayton are concerned I discover nothing to distinguish 
the varieties except the time of blooming. Some trees of both varie- 
ties have short, and some long pods. Some trees of both varieties 
have few, others great numbers of pods. The color of the bark and 
texture of the wood seem to be the same. Mr. William P. Huffman, 
of this city, planted seeds for 2,000 catalpa trees two years ago. They 
gr^w nicely, but were frozen down to the ground the first winter, 
which was a severe one. Last spring he transplanted them, cutting 
them all down to the ground. They grew nicely and perfectly straight 
last year, and now look handsomely, three to four feet high. He is 
not certain from which variety he took the seed. I shall look with 
much interest for the blooming of the trees next spring. If it proves 
of the later variety Mr. Foster's theory will be confirmed. 

The Forestry Annual of the Iowa Horticultural Society, of Iowa, 
for the year 1877, says of the catalpa : 

" Experience has demonstrated this tree to have special value for 
extended planting. Although naturally a tree indigeneous farther 
south, it seems to have a peculiar tendency to adapt itself to northern 
limits. A variety now grown quite extensively in central Iowa seems 
as hardy as our native trees, (This is Mr. Foster's hardy catalpa.) The 
writer has trees now five years old large enough for small posts for 
wire fences, which have had open exposure north of 42° parallel dur- 
ing the past severe winters. In Cedar County are to be seen many 
trees, which have been out from ten to fifteen years, which show its 
habit of rapid growth to continue after it attains considerable size. In 
its native forests it attains considerable size, growing from fifty to 
eighty feet in height, with diameter of from eighteen to twenty-five 
inches. Its flowers are very showy, and its odd cylindrical pods at- 
tract much attention. It is very durable for posts. Posts are yet 
sound in Illinois which have been set, it is claimed, forty years. The 
plants are very easily to grow from seeds, which may be kept until 
time of sowing. But in all cases secure seed grown on northern trees. 
In Cedar County, near Muscatine, seeds are abundant. The trees 
flower and bear seeds abundantly when quite young." 

Prof. T. J. Burrill, of the Illinois Industrial University, at Urbana, 
writes : 

" From the experiments so far at this University the catalpa tree is 



bile of the cheapest and easiest to grow, and one of the ttiost rapidly 
growing of our forest trees, native or introduced. In our plantation, 
containing about twenty selected species, only the soft maple and 
white willow have in eight years time surpassed it. It has outgrown 
the white or American elm, white ash, European larch, osage orange, 
black walnut, etc., upon the same ground and under similar treatment. 
It is not attacked by any insect, nor does it appear to be subject to 
any disease whatever, e.xcept a white mildew upon the leaves late in 
the season, which does no appreciable damage. Our trees were raised 
from seed planted in the spring of 1869, and replanted in the spring 
of 1 87 1. When reset the top was cut to the ground, because they 
were crooked and much branched. They were from seed collected 
from trees on the farm of Hon. W. C. Flagg, near Alton, III, were 
set 2x4 feet in the plantation, to induce erect growth, cultivated like 
corn for three years, and plowed once each of the two following years, 
since which time nothing has been done to them, except a very little 
pruning. Next spring every other row will be remo\ed, and used for 
stakes in vineyard, fences, etc. The average height is now as nearly 
as can be ascertained 16 feet 3 inches, and average diameter 3 inches. 
Some are much larger. They are as straight and erect as can be de- 
sired, and grew in 1877 an average of t,;^ inches. They have never 
suffered from winter killing until November, 1876-7, and then not 
enough to interfere with their growth as timber trees. But single trees 
planted for ornament in home grounds have frecpiently suffered so 
severely from frost as to very much damage them, and to cause them 
to be often discarded. 

"While collecting specimens of the trees of Illinois for the centen- 
nial, I found some boards, sawed from a catalpa log, some two feet in 
diameter, (so that the boards were nearly two feet), which was known 
to have lain on the ground one hundred years. One man had known 
the log to have thus lain during forty years of this time, and he had 
the information directly from another as to the previous sixty years. 
This was in the extreme southern portion of Illinois, about twelve 
miles from Cairo, in the Mississippi river bottoms. The wood is still 
sound and strong, and susceptible of a fair polish, though not as good 
as fresh specimens. Judge Brown, of Villa Ridge, 111., thinks the 
wood more durable in wet places than in dry — posts lasting better in 
wet ground. 

" Suel. Foster, of Muscatine, Iowa, has long grown the catali)a from 
seed, and believes he has secured a variety quite hardy in his latitude. 



22 

I know of no one else who has given so much attention to the nursery 
growth of the catalpa as Mr. Foster. In this locaUty most people are 
inclined to look upon the experiment with the catalpa as a foolish one, 
and I have frequently been told that we were wasting our time and 
money. We are satisfied the plantation will pay for itself, even 
though there comes as much winter killing each year as occurred in 
1876-7." 

Joseph S. Fay, of Boston, Massachusetts, writes : 

"I have a farm in Falmouth (Cape Cod) where my tree planting 
has been done, and in that town I know of two good sized catalpa 
trees, very thrifty, grown from seed that came from Cincinnati about 
twenty-five years ago. This would show that sea air is not injurious 
to it, and as Cape Cod is surrounded by water the climate is softer 
and less extreme than in the interior of Massachusetts, it may do bet- 
ter there than farther inland and to the northward." 

Dr. John A. Warder, President of the Ohio State Horticultural So- 
ciety, writes : 

"The natural history of the catalpa tree is peculiar, especially in its 
limited range of habitat, being essentially western and southern, or 
more correctly south-western, being found in the Wabash valley farther 
northward than elsewhere, and making the finest trees, thence toward 
the mouth of the Mississippi. On the Savannah River it is said to be 
a scraggy tree. Like many other plants, however, it appears to have 
a much wider possible range, and the reports from Iowa inform us 
that they have a hardy variety that has withstood the severe winters 
of that region, as far north as latitude 42°. You have in Dayton a 
variety that blossoms two weeks earlier than others. In this neigh- 
borhood are some trees that are very much stunted and scraggy, 
though the soil is rich enough, others are upright and thrifty. At 
Terre Haute, Indiana, most of the catalpas are remarkable for their 
upright habit and thrift. 

" We may be encouraged to plant the catalpa largely on account of 
its rapid growth and the good qualities of its timber. The seeds 
should be sown rather thickly in drills, covered about an inch with 
fine soil, and well cultivated for one year, during which time they will 
attain a height of twelve to twenty-four inches. The following spring 
they may be set out four feet apart each way, and cultivated as a crop 
of corn. This culture may be continued the following year, but the 
dense, or rather the broad foliage effectually subdues the weeds. 
Planted thus thickly the young trees spire upward, and the side 



23 

branches are smothered. It must be remembered that on account of 
the triple system of its physiology, this tree is very prone to branch in 
triplets, and thus prevent the formation of a good straight stem. It 
should also be borne in mind that the rapid growth, at first soft and 
yielding, and heavily laden with wide leaves, which become much 
heavier when wet by showers, is often unable to sustain its own 
weight, and bends down, causing the young tree to be crooked. 

" In regard to your inquiry about thinning the trees, I have found 
already after six or seven years' growth, they begin to die out, the weak- 
er plants that are overshadowed by the stronger. My trees planted as 
above indicated, will not pay for thinning out at eight years, but might 
be better for having say one-fourth hacked down, but I think it will be 
cheaper to let them die and fall. Nor do I expect to find a profitable 
thinning in less than ten years, and only poles and stakes then. 

"At twenty years there might be a cutting of posts and possibly of 
cross-ties, but not so many to a tree as you name. I think you under- 
rate the proportion of sapwood. I have a log that was twenty years 
old when cut, that has lain on the ground five years, and the outer lay- 
ers, the sapwood, are crumbling with decay. My older trees have 
suffered in a peculiar way. In midsummer whole branches suddenly 
fail, the leaves wilt and drop, and presently dry up and fall, and the 
limb is dead as with blight, without any appreciable cause not yet 
seen in my plantations. 

"By all means urge close planting, and the use of yearling trees, to be 
set Avith a spade, in the slit formed by it, at the rate of a thousand per 
day easily, after ground has been marked off with a light furrow or by 
a corn marker. They all grow whether cut down or not, but should 
be sorted for an even stand." 

Mr. Kramer near Dayton, writes : 

"The catalpa seed you furnished me last spring, I planted in rows 
four feet apart and eight to ten inches in a row. It all germinated 
and grew beautifully, shooting up perfectly straight from three to five 
feet in height. I have two thousand as handsome trees as I would 
wish to see." 

Mr. Mumma, also near Dayton, writes : 

' 'The catalpa seed I received of you last year I planted in rows four 
feet apart, six inches in the row. I think there was not a single seed 
that failed to germinate, and all grew splendidly from three to four feet 
in height. I have sold most of them to go west for transplanting. I 
shall plant largely next spring." 



24 

Mr. Bear, of Heikes' Nursery Co. , writes : 

"I would transplant after first years growth, in rows four feet each 
way, cutting down to the ground, to secure more erect and more rapid 
growth. The seed may be soaked in tepid water, if thoroughly 
stirred every few hours, until the wings of the seed begin to turn 
towards each other, when they should all be planted within a few hours. 
To be successful, the process must be managed skilfully." 

From observation and all the information I have been able to gather 
thus far, in planting catalpas I would select the earlier blooming va- 
riety of the catalpa for seed. Plant in deep, mellow, rich soil, three 
or four feet apart in rows, and leave the plant to stand not nearer than 
one foot in the row. I prefer this, from having seen them planted in one 
case in some places one foot apart, and in others in bunches and one 
to three inches apart. When in bunches and close together the shoots 
were one-fourth inch in diameter and twelve inches high ; when a foot 
apart, they were three to four feet high and one inch in diameter. In 
another seed-bed, where they were all four feet by one foot apart, the 
first year's growth was four to five feet high and one inch in diameter. 
The ground was equally favorable in both cases. 

At the end of the first year they are more easily transplanted. If 
they are left to remain two years in the seed-bed, they occupy less 
room and will grow as well. I would transplant at end of one or two 
years, as most convenient, but in either case I would cut down to the 
ground. 

While the catal])a will grow in almost any soil, the deeper and the 
better the soil the more rapid the growth. River bottoms are deemed 
the best adapted to its rapid growth. 

I would plant two by four or four by four feet. I think they will 
grow well two by four feet for eight years, at which time the Illinois 
Industrial University reports them large enough for stakes for fences 
and vineyards, and cut out alternate rows for that purpose. I prefer 
two by four or four by four feet to insure upward growth. After a 
certain period I think this too thick to secure the best development of 
the tree. 

Dr. Warder and Mr. Bucklin, as will be seen by reference to what 
they have written, prefer to let nature do her own thinning and prun- 
ing. It is still my impression that at a proper period, whether this be 
eight, ten or more years, must be determined in each case by exercising 
sound judgment, I would cut out possibly each alternate row one way, 
and at the proper time each alternate row the other way, using what is 



•io 



cut out for such purposes as it is suitable. Several of the largest and 
most successful planters of forests, practice and recommend this thin- 
nmg out process, as the trees grow larger, and claim what is thus cut 
out more than pays all expenses of land and cultivation, thus securing 
a much larger growth and more valuable timber, at a clear profit. If 
this mode works well as to other kinds of trees, I see not why it will 
not work equally well in growth of catalpa. 

If planted in rows, they can be cut out when pretty large, without 
mjury to the remaining trees, by beginning at one end of a row, trim- 
ming u]) the first tree, and cutting off all large limbs, fastening I rope 
near the top, and bending the tree in the right direction as it is cut, 
and so with each successive tree. 

It IS my impression that eight feet each way is quite as close, if not 
closer than will enable the trees to develop best after twenty years or 
more. But this must be determined by observation. 

Very recently I tested pieces of catalpa cut from different trees, 
with a variety of wood, with the following result: 

Pieces of catalpa one inch square broke— with a pressure applied at 
the center between supports twelve inches apart— at 540, 500, 790, 
500, 575' 752 and 762 pounds respectively. Black walnut, under 
same circumstances, broke at a pressure of 1042 and 848 pounds. 
Ash, 1 2 16, and 1040 pounds. Oak at 932 and 1008 pounds. 
Yellow pine, 624 and 848 pounds. Norway, 384, 548, 584, and 640 
pounds. White pine, 448 and 384 pounds. White walnut, 608 and 
480 pounds. 

Five thousand pounds pressure on a block of oak one inch square, 
resting horizontally on a solid foundation, compressed it to yg inch,' 
another pressed to fg inch, and another to ^4 inch. Same weight 
compressed one piece of catalpa to ,1, one to ,1, one to ,%, and one'^to 
I'e- White pine was compressed to j^. Norway to i%. White walnut 
to ,i Yellow pine ,« . Black walnut i° and ,%. Ash compressed one 
way only to \l another to f^. 

These samples were taken at random, and would indicate that 
catalpa will bear the pressure to which it is subjected when used as 
railroad ties. Two catalpa railroad ties have been in use near our 
office over four years, and twelve others for the last five months. All 
hold their spikes well, and show no indications of mashing more than 
oak each side of them, and over both of which heavily loaded trains 
pass almost hourly. 



26 

There cannot be less than 200,000,000 ties in the various railroads 
in the United States. At 200 ties per acre, it has required 1,000,000 
acres of well timbered land to furnish them. The average life of ties 
is hardly more than five years. It requires 200,000 acres of land each 
year to keep up the supply. Three times that amount is required 
each year to furnish the lumber used in bridges and rolling stock. 
It requires the lumber on 1,000,000 acres of land each year to supply 
the wants of our railroads for all purposes. 

If the foregoing facts have demonstrated that the catalpa will resist 
decay equal to any, if not better than any other timber, that it is suita- 
ble for ties, that it can be readily cultivated and grown in very large 
quantities — is it not an exemplification of that wisdom that forecasts 
the future and provides for its necessities, that all railroads in that 
portion of the country where it may be grown, plant at once enough 
at least to provide for their own future wants ? Is it not equally wise 
for farmers to plant not only enough for their own needs but enough 
to supply their less provident neighbors, and also to supply the wants 
of the numerous railroads, who for various reasons do not provide for 
themselves, but depend on others for their supply. 

I have done what I could to collect information on this subject, and 
shall continue to be under great obligation if any one having knowl- 
edge of facts bearing on this subject, will communicate them to me. 

What I have done has been with a desire to disseminate valuable 
information, and if good shall be accomplished by it, to any, I shall 
be amply paid for my trouble. 



